The 2021 British Columbia wildfires burned across the Canadian province of British Columbia. The wildfires burned an area of about 8,600 square kilometres. A wildfire destroyed most of the Village of Lytton and a nearby First Nation, taking two lives.
The BC Wildfire Service attributed the severity of the 2021 wildfire season to a combination of extreme heat, lower than normal rainfall, and "repeated severe thunderstorms and lightning events." These factors were exacerbated by human-caused climate change.
As of August 16, over 1,500 fires were recorded according to the BC Wildfire Service. The Sparks Lake Fire, the largest fire burning in the province, burned an estimated 959 square kilometres (95,980 hectares; 237,172 acres) in the Bonaparte Plateau northwest of the city of Kamloops.
Development A heat dome gripped the province of British Columbia, and much of Western North America, from June 25–30, 2021. This increased the risk of wildfires.
On June 30, the village of Lytton was evacuated due to a fire that destroyed most of its buildings. This fire grew to over and sent people fleeing for their lives.
By July 1, 2021, almost 500 wildfires were burning across British Columbia. On July 20 the B.C. government declared a state of emergency.
Wildfires
The following is a list of fires that burned more than , or produced significant structural damage or casualties. More up to date information is available using this interactive map; BC Wildfire Service Map List of fires over Name Regional district Hectares (acres) Start date Containment status Notes George Road FireThompson-Nicola Being heldHuman-caused Beatton River FirePeace River Under control Lightning-caused Buckinghorse FirePeace River Under control Lightning-caused Sparks Lake FireThompson-Nicola Under controlLargest wildfire by area burned McKay Creek FireSquamish-Lillooet Under controlSuspected human-caused Minaker FirePeace River Under control Lightning-caused Klawli Lake FireBulkley-Nechako Under control Lightning-caused Lytton Creek FireThompson-Nicola Under controlDestroyed the village of Lytton; two confirmed casualties Mckinley Lake FireCariboo Being held Lightning-caused South of Canim Lake FireCariboo Under control Lightning-caused SW of Deka Lake FireCariboo Under control Lightning-caused Young Lake FireThompson-Nicola Under control Lightning-caused Chilako FireBulkley-Nechako Under control Lightning-caused Mount Porter FireBulkley-Nechako Being held Lightning-caused Succour Lake FireCariboo Being held Lightning-caused Tentfire Creek FirePeace River Being held Lightning-caused Big Stick Lake FireCariboo Under control Black Pine FirePeace River Under control Lightning-caused Churn Creek Protected Area FireThompson-Nicola Being held Lightning-caused Cultus Creek FireCentral Kootenay Being held Lightning-caused Cutoff Creek FireBulkley-Nechako Being held Lightning-caused Hotnarko Creek FireCentral Coast Being held Lightning-caused Forres Mountain FirePeace River Under control Lightning-caused Purdy Lake FireCariboo Under control Lightning-caused Bunting Road FireNorth Okanagan Being held Chief Louie Lake FireBulkley-Nechako Being held Lightning-caused Momich Lake FireThompson-Nicola Under control Flat Lake FireThompson-Nicola Under control Lightning-caused Akokli Creek FireCentral Kootenay Being held Lightning-caused Embleton Mountain FireThompson-Nicola Under control Hunakwa Lake FireColumbia-Shuswap Being held Lightning-caused Mowhokam Creek FireThompson-Nicola Being held Lightning-caused Trozzo Creek FireCentral Kootenay Under control Lightning-caused Bill Nye Mountain FireEast Kootenay Being held Lightning-caused Crazy Creek Gorge FSR FireColumbia-Shuswap Being held Lightning-caused Grizzly Lake FireBulkley-Nechako Under control Lightning-caused Michaud Creek FireCentral Kootenay Being held Lightning-caused Thomas Creek FireOkanagan-Similkameen Being held Three Valley Lake FireColumbia-Shuswap Under control Tremont Creek FireThompson-Nicola Under control Chasm FireThompson-Nicola Under control Lightning-caused July Mountain FireThompson-Nicola Being held Lightning-caused; merged with Brook Creek Fire White Rock Lake FireThompson-Nicola Being held Lightning-caused. Destroyed the village of Monte Lake; part of the city of Kamloops placed under evacuation order, firefighter injured after falling several meters. Brenda Creek FireCentral Okanagan Under control Octopus Creek FireCentral Kootenay Being held Lightning-caused Nk'Mip Creek FireOkanagan-Similkameen Being held Two Mile Road FireColumbia-Shuswap Being held Garrison Lake FireOkanagan-Similkameen Being held Pine River FirePeace River Being held Mt Law FireOkanagan-Similkameen Under controlSuspected human-caused. Parts of West Kelowna evacuated.
References
See also List of disasters in Canada 2021 Western North America heat wave